The Color Purple Poet Jasmine Mans

The Color Purple Poet Jasmine Mans once said, “Jesus. Will you be the only one remembered for sacrifice?” Mans questions is her sacrifice wondering if her sacrifice is worth it. In the movie The Color Purple? a woman by the Celie will question her sacrifices as well. ?The Color Purple?, written by Alice Walker, later became a movie directed by Steven Spielberg in 1985. Spielberg conveys multiple examples of abuse towards black women by telling the story of a African American woman named Celie.

Celie lives in post-slavery Georgia when the movie begins in 1909 , when she is subjected to abuse by her step father, Fonso who later married her off to a man named Mister, who continued to abuse her. While many black men may not believe this they are apart of the problem, black men abuse black women and force them to sacrifice everything because they have no power during post slavery. The Color Purple? tells the life story of a fourteen year old African American woman named Celie who was abused by the men in her life. Although Celie is uneducated she begins writing letters to God because of the abuse she receives from her step father Alphonso.

Shortly after giving birth to two of Alfonso’s children who she aren’t allowed to keep, Alfonso marries Celie off to a man named Mister. While being married to Mister, Celie endures the same abuse she did when was staying with her step father until Misters mistress Shug Avery comes to town. When Shug Avery comes to town she teaches Celie self love and liberation.

The purpose of the Color purple is to display the life of a black woman during post slavery. This movie focuses on the struggles of being a black woman and all the pain one had to endure because of the black man. Because the black man had no power in a society dominated by white men they became angry and started abuses their black women. The abuse was not limited, the black woman was abused physically, mentally, and emotionally. With abuse came sacrifice. Steven Spielberg wanted to show how black women had to sacrifice everything and even then it wasn’t enough.

Spielberg’s message was focused towards black men and women. Steven wanted to make his message clear so he hired a primarily black cast of Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, Danny Glover, and Margaret Avery and others to unveil his message. As we already know Spielberg’s movie displayed the struggles and sacrifices a black woman had to go through because of the black man, but what were the exact issues raised through the movie? Throughout the movie Celie had to fight to stay strong during times when she was raped, abused, and when her self esteem was being torn down, but she wasn’t the only one. Celie advises her step son Harpo to beat on his wife Sofia because he feels like he has no power and control. Sofia tells Celie, “ All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my brothers. A girl child ain’t safe in a family of mens. But I ain’t never thought I had to fight in my own house.” This situation helps to understand the recurring message that black women struggled all their life during post slavery. In this scene, Celie is seen as the antagonist. Spielberg didn’t intend on making Celie the enemy, instead he was trying to get the audience to see life from Celies’ perspective. Abuse was all Celie knew, she had been raped and mentally abused by a man who she thought was her father and then physically, mentally, and verbally abused by her husband Mister. Celie truly thought that abuse was the only way to resolve Harpo’s problems. It isn’t until the end of the movie when Celie learns that her struggles weren’t worth the sacrifice. Throughout Celie’s journey she is forced to sacrifice everything; her childhood, her freedom, even her sister Nettie. When Celie’s husband’s mistress Shug Avery comes to town Celie is no longer subjected to rape. Shug teaches Celie so many important life lessons like liberation and self love that Celie begins to live for herself. Celie recognizes that thirty years of abuse and rape weren’t worth the sacrifice and plans to leave Mister.

Apon leaving Mister, Celie is reunited with her two children Adam and Olivia; and her younger sister Nettie. The Color Purple ?is not just a movie title or a color it a term symbolic to those in search of happiness. This movie is filled with many messages that can be learned. The abuse black women had to endure all while sacrificing most of their lives and family is one message that can’t be ignored. This is still a problem today. Although black men have more power in today’s society, black women are still being put under their control and being forced to sacrifice everything to keep the black man happy. Like Celie, a lot of black women are trying to find their color purple meaning to find your power. The Color Purple? directed by Steven Spielberg is a very controversial movie.

Although many people may find it offensive it is not. It is showcases the battles for a female to gain freedom by focusing on the life of a young uneducated woman named Celie. Celie has been oppressed for years by being abused and neglected by the men in her life who were supposed to love her. This movie shows a woman in search of her color purple.

Works Cited

1. The Color Purple? written by Alice walker, directed by Steven Spielberg. ?Warner Bros.?, ?Amblin Entertainment “Snow Angels of Chalk Outlines” Jasmine mans 2012
2. https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS804US806&q=Warner+Bros.&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAOPgE-LUz9U3sKgoK8hT4gAzzbIttBSyk6300zJzcsGEVUFRfkppcklmfp5Ccn5uQWJe5SJWnvDEorzUIgWnovxiPQAEcQAwSAAAAA&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjPj4Own8zhAhUQc98KHWuaAo0QmxMoATApegQIDxBM https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS804US806&q=Amblin+Entertainment&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAOPgE-LUz9U3sKgoK8hTAjONDeIN47UUspOt9NMyc3LBhFVBUX5KaXJJZn6eQnJ-bkFiXuUiVhHH3KSczDwF17yS1KKSxMy83NS8EgC8Pi4KUQAAAA&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjPj4Own8zhAhUQc98KHWuaAo0QmxMoAjApegQIDxBN”

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